Danzo: Sarutobi, I Am Root!

"Something happened in the Land of Demons?"

Uchiha Makoto looked stunned, countless thoughts flashing through his mind.

"Yes."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said gravely.

"The shrine maiden of the Land of Demons sent a state letter saying they had been attacked by enemies of unknown identity. They hoped that we, as their allied nation, could help them."

"Moreover, it is said that the shrine maidens of the Land of Demons have sealed a demon known as Mōryō for generations. Now, the demon Mōryō is about to break free!"

"While the current shrine maiden was reinforcing Mōryō's seal, someone with malicious intent stole Mōryō's power. In just a few short months, he has already created a legion that cannot die!"

"However, don't worry. She has already borrowed the strength of several nearby minor shinobi villages to bring the situation under control."

Uchiha Makoto frowned slightly. He knew that many secrets were hidden in the Land of Demons, and he had made some arrangements there as well.

"Why me?"

Uchiha Makoto could not help asking.

"Shouldn't an enemy of this level be handled by members of the village's jōnin corps?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi said no more and handed Uchiha Makoto a document from the desk.

"This is the state letter from the Land of Demons. You may take a look. As for why you were chosen, it was determined through a prophecy by the shrine maiden of the Land of Demons. She hopes you can go there to assist her investigation, perhaps even resolve the unchanging fate that has burdened shrine maidens for a thousand years!"

The shrine maidens of the Land of Demons throughout the generations possessed the ability to accurately foresee the deaths of those they saw.

To this day, their prophecies had never been wrong.

There was one and only one way for someone foretold to die to escape that fate—leave the shrine maiden's side.

Uchiha Makoto accepted the document and quickly skimmed through it. There was not much information in it, but it was enough for him to realize the gravity of the situation.

The undead legion has reappeared, Mōryō is suspected to be on the verge of revival, and several unknown shinobi squads have appeared within the Land of Demons...

His expression shifted for quite some time. In the end, he merely gave a slight bow toward Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was handling official business, then silently closed the door and left.

The moment Uchiha Makoto stepped onto the street, his expression darkened.

I only wrote to Miroku last night, yet the Land of Demons' state letter arrived today. Has someone set their sights on me, or is this merely a coincidence?

The shrine maiden's prophecy...

Uchiha Makoto slowly exhaled and suppressed the thoughts in his heart.

Whatever the situation was, all he had to do was beat to death anyone standing in his way!

Tap!

After a long while, two sounds rang out in the Hokage's office almost simultaneously. Shimura Danzō opened his single eye and glanced at Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, who had set down their documents at the same time, seemingly unable to understand what they were thinking.

"What do you think of this? The Uchiha have made plenty of small moves over the years. Should we discuss it further, or..."

Koharu Utatane did not continue, but the other three all understood what she meant.

"En, what do you think?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Homura Mitokado, who was deep in thought beside him, and quietly asked.

Homura Mitokado seemed not to notice Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze and remained immersed in his thoughts.

"I just feel that..."

Homura Mitokado shook his head heavily, as though he had a thousand words in his heart but did not know where to begin.

"The Uchiha are becoming harder and harder to control!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent. As Hokage, he held great authority, but he had no right to openly target a villager who had done nothing wrong—not even an Uchiha!

After all, the Uchiha's actual duties were hardly important to begin with, and they were not likely to cause trouble serious enough to give him grounds to act against them.

It would not be easy to work in the shadows, either. The sort of rumors used against White Fang would not suit the Uchiha and might even provoke a backlash.

The Third frowned as he considered the matter. The Uchiha Clan as a whole now had an unprecedentedly low need for Konoha Village, and that was not good.

Furthermore, with the Uchiha Consortium, even if they did not work, they could still live comfortably off their clan dividends.

There was no point pressuring the police department now. They had implemented an auxiliary police system. Not only would that easily offend neutral parties, the Uchiha would at most bow and say, "I'm really sorry," and that would be the end of it.

At first, they had believed the Uchiha's large-scale move into business was an act of self-abandonment after failing to become Hokage, that they had completely given up on the position and would not affect Konoha's political landscape.

But who would have thought that now...

"Hiruzen, the Uchiha have seized every advantage. Is your Sarutobi Clan really not concerned? That is tens of billions of ryō in profit every year!"

"That's right, Hiruzen. You are far too soft on the Uchiha! We should make our move!"

"Heh heh heh..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi gave a smile that did not reach his eyes. Looking at the two old classmates before him who had just gotten a taste of the meat, he said coldly, "So-called business and industry are merely insignificant side paths. For a true shinobi, one's own strength is the most crucial and important foundation!"

He paused, then continued, "The Uchiha Clan may be temporarily ahead in certain respects, but that does not mean they can maintain that advantage forever."

At this point, Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice grew even lower. "What truly determines the shinobi world will never be them!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi might say pretty things to others, but there was no need to do so with Danzo and the others.

No matter how wealthy the Uchiha were, what impact could they have on Konoha's political landscape? They were nothing more than a money bag!

As the two advisors fell silent, Shimura Danzō spoke.

"Hiruzen, you have read the intelligence on Uchiha Makoto, have you not? He awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at such a young age. We must bring him under control!"

"Danzo, you are being too extreme!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked up at Danzo. Upon hearing his words, he could not help picking up the long pipe beside him, taking a puff as he said helplessly.

Deep down, Hiruzen Sarutobi still held some contempt for the Mangekyō Sharingan. It was not as though he had never seen one.

The Mangekyō Sharingan was powerful, but how long could it hold out against the Five Great Shinobi Villages? Did having a Mangekyō Sharingan make one Madara Uchiha?

Konoha now had no shortage of elite shinobi who had crawled out of mountains of corpses. Leaving aside anything else, even if the Uchiha truly had a Mangekyō Sharingan user, the two or three hundred jōnin of the Anbu and jōnin corps could wear him to death!

Shimura Danzō gave a cold laugh, his two bent fingers rapping against the desk with repeated bangs.

"Once those eyes are awakened, I fear none of us will be a match for the Uchiha!"

"Then we can discuss it when they awaken those eyes! Before that, you are not permitted to take any action!"

Shimura Danzō merely gave him a deep look upon hearing this. After rising to his feet, he snorted coldly and did not argue further.

You think I will stop just because you told me not to act? There are plenty of things you have told me not to do.

"Sarutobi, I am Root!"

Bang!

As he watched Shimura Danzō slam the door and leave, Hiruzen Sarutobi's frown deepened further.

"Danzo has gone too far when it comes to the Uchiha..."